Philippines mandates three for tap...

... but may be changing its mind in the wake of Indonesia''s trading performance.

The Republic of the Philippines mandated Deutsche Bank, HSBC and JPMorgan for a $500 million or so benchmark tap of its 2015 bond on Wednesday. The two most striking aspects of the prospective transaction are its timing, which is unfortunate and the fees, which are pitiful and show that the reality of a free deal is inching ever closer for Asia's most prolific borrower.